Tracy Morgan Suing Wal-Mart For Fatal Crash

Sonya Eskridge is a writer from Maryland, who started her news career in radio at the age of 17. After graduating from Virginia Tech, she went on to write for a national publication where she was able to mold her personal voice. Always looking for ways to inform on important issues--or share her love of nerdy and girly things—Sonya thoroughly enjoys writing about a wide range of subjects.

Tracy Morgan is taking legal action against Wal-Mart for the fatal accident that landed him in the hospital last month.

The “30 Rock” funny man filed suit against the discount department store in U.S. District Court in New Jersey, according to The Hollywood Reporter. This comes after the June 7 collision, where Wal-Mart truck driver Kevin Roper ran into the limo that Tracy and several other people were riding in.

Tracy was left in critical condition and had slipped into a coma for a few days as a result of the crash, which killed his friend James McNair. Among his injuries, Tracy suffered a broken nose, a broke femur and cracked ribs. He was later taken to an undisclosed rehabilitation center once he was in fair condition.

“As a direct and proximate result of said collision,” the complaint states, “Mr. Morgan was caused to sustain severe painful bodily injuries, including but not limited to multiple fractures which required multiple surgeries, extensive medical treatment and will require significant physical rehabilitation.”

Tracy and the other plaintiffs–including James’ widow, Krista Millea, and Tracy’s assistant, Jeffrey Millea–are suing Wal-Mart for negligence. Supposedly, Kevin had been up for more than 24 hours before the crash, and they claim that a mechanism that should have prevented the accident didn’t engage.

“Wal-Mart was careless and negligent in the ownership and operation of its motor vehicle, which caused Mr. Morgan to suffer severe personal injuries,” the suit states, adding that truck’s collision avoidance system did not go off before the crash. “Wal-Mart knew or should have known that one of the truck’s most important safety features had been compromised.”

Tracy and the victims are requesting that the case be tried before a jury. They’re seeking compensatory, statutory and punative damages. They also want Wal-Mart to pay for legal fees as well as pre-judgement and post-judgement interest. Krista is also suing for loss of consortium.

Wal-Mart has issued a statement apologizing for the incident and acknowledging their expectation to go to court over the matter.

“This has been a terrible tragedy. We wish Mr. Morgan, Mr. Fuqua Jr., and Mr. Millea full recoveries,” Wal-Mart stated. “We are deeply sorry that one of our trucks was involved. As we’ve said, we’re cooperating fully in the ongoing investigation. We know it will take some time to resolve all of the remaining issues as a result of the accident, but we’re committed to doing the right thing for all involved.”